Why It’s Okay To Hate Your Writing
5 Tips to help you find your inner voice.
There is a time for big and bold, and there is a time for quiet and captivating, but there is nothing worse than producing copy that is just bland. You hate your writing, and you don’t know why.
Nods. I’ve been there, and it is the worst. It’s okay to hate your writing at some point everyone does. It could be because you just started or you’re still working on your skills, but everyone feels this way. Everyone has work that gets rejected. It’s essential to keep editing and keep trying.
Before we get to my favourite things to do when my writing is stale, let’s take a look at some of the reasons why you might hate your writing:
You’ve lost your writing voice.
I see this as a traumatic divorce with your inner voice. Your inner voice is where your creativity lies, and sometimes she disappears with no notice, and she isn’t coming back unless you’re on your knees, in the gutter with your whole world in flames behind you.
If a big shiver just came over your whole body like the grim reaper himself is knocking on your door then you know what it means to lose your writing voice. It happens. We never know when it’s going to strike, but when it does, all it leaves is the hollow shell of a writer in its gruesome wake.
You’re exhausted.
You’re trying to keep so many plates in the air that you are running yourself into the ground. You’ve been wearing the same P.J.’s for three days straight, and you just pulled a Cheeto from your ponytail. Relatable?
You can’t write excellent copy if your life is a cycle of all work and no play especially since we are all trapped in this groundhog day of pandemic isolation hell. It’s time to switch off. Have a zoom call with a friend, read a book it’s time to rest that big beautiful brain of yours.
You’ve been writing in the same genre /space for too long.
This is otherwise known as madness. If you know that madness is doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result, then why are you writing in the same genre or formats? Get out there and experiment with different writing styles and platforms. Ever taken part in a Twitter ‘Hang Ten’ story prompt? A flash fiction competition?
Why not flex those writing muscles and hulk out? Kill some characters in a way that has your family members eating in different rooms come dinner time. Variety is the spice of life, so head on out there and sample something new. This kid knows what I mean:
Still with me? Fantastic!
Now that we’ve tackled some of the causes of stale writing, it’s time to look at some things we can do to get those juices flowing:
1. Get out of your bubble.
If you are in your head too much, it’s hard to write new and exciting copy. It’s time to break out your favourite author swipe file and start flicking through those inspiring pieces of theirs.
Wait, you don’t have a swipe file? Well, then it’s time to make one. Find some authors that you love and put some of their most inspiring works into a file for days when your copy is flat.
Read it. Learn from it and get back to the happy tapping of your keyboard.
2. Watch a comedy.
T.V. has saved my life (okay not literally), but it has injected humour into my writing. There is nothing like a good belly laugh to get some energy back into the room.
Depending on my mood, I can watch anything from The Lego Movie to The Big Bang Theory to old episodes of Friends. I keep some reliable favourites to get me into a particular headspace. Why not make a coffee and press play? You won’t regret it.
3. People inspiration.
Writing is inspired by life, and you can’t be inspired if you’re always working. It’s time to get outside and notice what’s going on around you. Look deep at interactions happening around you. No, not in the creepy stalker way but can you capture those emotions and put it down on paper?
Take in the great wide world around you even if it’s from your balcony. Just make sure to put a mask on before you do!
4. Get your body moving.
It’s time for exercise. Yes, it’s hard, especially on those days you are fighting your hormones. How can you inject energy into your writing if you have no energy to give?
Use an adrenaline hit to attack your writing Rocky-style before knocking it out of the park. Okay, I’m mixing metaphors, but it works right?
5. Do you still have flat copy?
Then my final go-to tip is to edit with power words. I keep a list of emotional and power words that I have to work into my writing in times of dire need. I take these power words and working through writing exercises, proven templates and formats.
Not everything you write will be amazing, but it still needs to be good enough to print. So follow one of your proven templates and work your story through from beginning to end. You do have a save file of your posts that do well don’t you? Then go back, removing stale, boring words with power words and watch that copy come to life.
Don’t know what I mean by power words?
Those are the words that when used right, trigger a psychological or emotional response in your audience like:
- Confessions
- Shocking
- Sensational
- Fearless
You can find a handy list over here and here. Use those words wisely young Padawan. The force is real, and it lies in the hands of copywriters everywhere.
Phew, that was a lot longer than I wanted it to be. I hope you found something you can use in this post.
No go forth and write with passion, humour and confidence.
